Well, you`ve done yourself proud here.I pop back here every now and again,`cos your the mutt`s nuts on Rocksteady info.All power to your Dancecrasher 100 Best Rocksteady Tunes.Keep up the good work.Excellent.

This post has caused offence to a former moderator of the Chatty Mouth board. I’m sorry this has happened, no disrespect was intended as the comments are all reasonably lighthearted which I believe is clear.

I’d be interested to see you list them in order of importance/usefulness Tim – (although I fully appreciate why you might not want to).

For all the drama on that board, the people on ‘Chatty Mouth’ have consistently been the most useful/knowledgeable/forthcoming for me when I’ve been seeking information about Alpha old boys. B&F a close second – but perhaps less useful now than it once was.

I wouldn’t dare Baldy 😉
Seriously though I’d say I enjoy Blood And Fire and Pama the best. As for Chatty Mouth, after the latest outbursts, childish digs and abuse I doubt I’ll be posting there again. Life’s too short…

great initiative and a nice read/listen. cant wait or the rest of the list. just wantde to point out two of the most famous ‘versions’ of gir iv’e got a dat: Harry J’s Liquidator and the non reggae version of the Staple singers ‘Ill Take you there’ , to my knowlegde te only time a reggae song gets a soul/funk version, usually it is the other way around.

Hey guess what? the hottest reggae singer Ava leigh whoâ€™s worked with the famous Sly n Robbie, Nick Manasseh, and future cut has free music you can download at http://www.avaleigh.co.uk ?check it out.

Love your work and can’t wait to see the future additions. I’ll be interested to see where Desmond Dekker’s Fu Manchu and Alton Ellis’ If I Could Rule this World appear on your list. Love the label shots too. Great reading. Thanks.

I really like the new layout Tim. I believe that Little Clive who toasted on ‘African Bread’ is Clive Chin but can’t confirm that 100%. Nice to hear ‘Stamma’ on the intro as well.
Just in case anyone is interested the inspiration for Dennis Alcapone’s fantastically titled ‘Erotic Touch of Hot Skin’ can be found here;http://tinyurl.com/2le6db

Great to see these lists of music I have loved for 40 years. Do not agree with all of the comments but that is hardly the point. Maybe you are right and I am wrong. I have most of them and want the rest!

Hello at dancecrasher,just stumbled onto your site and its brilliant.had to sell all my ska n rocksteady records years ago,just starting collecting again.Hope my faves are gonna be in your 100 greatest rocksteady list.1.wailing wailers nice time. 2.Tommy MCcook soul for sale.3.Ewan and Jerry rocksteady train.4.The Jamaicans woman go home.5.Bob Andy I’ve got to go back home.keep up the good work i’m off to put on some tunes.

â€œPatsy – Love Is Divine , This only came out on a Jamaican blank originally.â€

This came out at least twice on Jamaican issue (label or not) once with “Toast to James Bond” by Baba Brooks and once with another B Side (don’t know what it is but it wasn’t memorable) which unfortunately is the one I have!

Excellent stuff. I’ve always been very much into rocksteady so this top 100 is just what I need. If you need a scan of the labelled Treating me bad (or Miss Cushie with center, or Johnnie Cool on Olive Blossom with credits), let me know! I will be glad to help out. Respect!

Hi Tim… have to say I think that the Drum Song ‘original’ is a bit of a red herring…. different chord changes, no trace of the horns melody (in either version) – and the bass line (though more obvious in the El Chicano) is close, but not close enough for me. Coincidental, imho, just like ‘Green Island’ and ‘Get Carter’……..

And while I’m on it – the original to Errol Dunkley’s You’re Gonna Need Me’ is by Barbara Lynn (on Jamie)…. Great project – keep up the good work, Cheers, Chris

Thank for this Chris, I’ve got to say I did think long and hard about the Viva Tirado link, any similaritiy is as you say pretty week. That said I thought the similarity with El Chicano was clear, but that came after Drum Song so who copied who? Still you much more of a musician than me so undoubtedly your right. I’ll amend the article when I get round to it.

DREAD AT THE CONTROLS
Michael Campbell better known as Mikey Dread, is a Jamaican singer, producer, and broadcaster.

From an early age, Campbell showed a natural aptitude for engineering and electronics. After he finished college, Campbell started out as an engineer with the Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation (JBC). Campbell wasn’t impressed that the JBC’s playlists mainly consisted of bland, foreign pop music at a time when some of the most potent reggae was being recorded in Jamaica. He convinced his JBC bosses to give him his own radio program called Dread At The Controls, where he played nothing but reggae. Before long, Campbell (now using the DJ name Mikey Dread) had the most popular program on the JBC. Well-known for its fun and adventurous sonic style, Dread At The Controls became a hit all over Jamaica. Inevitably, JBC’s conservative management and Campbell clashed, and he quit in protest.

By that time, Campbell had earned a solid reputation as a singer and producer and began recording his own material. Distinctive albums such as Dread At The Controls, Evolutionary Rockers, and World War III all became favorites amongst reggae fans. His collaboration with producers King Tubby and Carlton Patterson stand out as some of the best work each party has done. Campbell’s music attracted the attention of British punk rockers The Clash, who invited him over to England to produce some of their music. Although initially suspicious of the strangers, Campbell soon became the best of friends with the band, producing their famous “Bankrobber” single and performing on several songs on their 1980 album Sandinista!. Campbell also toured with The Clash across Britain, Europe, and the US, gaining many new fans along the way.

After many years working as a producer and singer, Campbell withdrew from the business and moved to Miami where he furthered his college education with courses in electronics and business. Disgusted with several unfair contracts with record companies, Campbell shrewdly waited until all of the existing contracts expired and then regained control over his entire catalogue. Since then, he has been re-releasing much of it on his own Dread At The Controls record label.

In October 2007, it was announced that Campbell was being treated for a brain tumour.

hi there,
thanks for your feedback. This is a trailer for a film I am in the process of finishing. At this i am looking for some funding to clear the amazing archive and music. I am hoping to get this film into UK (and European film festivals if I’m lucky) towards the end of 2008.
The working title is “Ska Beat”

Nice feature. I always imagined a Delroy original to ‘Smoke without fire’ before discovering this! Is there the same guitar bits on the original (Lynne Tait?)? Anywhere I can hear the whole original?
Keep up the good work.
Vinc

Went to see this the other day. It is unmissable for any lover of reggae history but like most documentaries on the subject, does not give a clear indication of the music’s progression though its different eras, from boogie shuffle to reggae. Do see it though.

Glad that you enjoyed the film and exhibition. I devised and directed the film and I wanted to give voices to the people that moved the scene onwards. So I only worked the story themes that Coventry people talked about.

Most older sounds talked about R&B from the Louis Jordan era, Bluebeat or ska the move to reggae and dancehall. Mento and Rock Steady weren’t mentioned in the interviews. I was happy that we got some detail about sound system equipment like the mighty GEC KT88 valves, Garrad decks and quad boxes which I hope make up for the gaps.

Got my CD and the 7″ of ” Lorna Banana ” this week.An absolutely crucial set of tunes from the guys at Pressure Sounds.Excellent liner notes.
Thanks DanceCrasher for the initial heads-up and the follow up reminder.You were right – You Need To Buy It :Â¬).

this is a wonderful collection of rocksteady beats.. i m a deaf individual who is confined to the steady beats and bass of reggae. the faster these lists come the more i can fill my mp3 player with some of these songs.. currently thru napster.. any better reggae song sites i could download some of these songs?

Thanks for the link Tim. I think ‘Double Barrel’ was the first Reggae record I bought. I must have played it thousands of times over the years and still do. I really like the rhythm and play the version side a lot. It was really interesting to find out who played on the session. I knew about Sly and (obviously) Ansell but didn’t know about the others. Trust ace Engineer Lynford ‘Andy Capp’ Anderson to be involved too!

many fond memories of the Skatalites Band. As a teenager my brother and myself use to go to Bournemouth Club on Wednesday nights to hear
them. We journeyed from Spanish town by Bus not knowing how we were getting home at 3:00 am when the session was over. Dizzy RIP, You’re gone to join Gabriel, Don, Roland, Jackie, Tommy and the rest.There’ll be some sweet sounds coming down on the night shift.
As for me I got a whole lot of your music to last a lifetime.
Farewell Brother Man, Farewell

If anyone’s interested in #61, “Won’t you come home” by Delroy Wilson, the version that appears on Dancing Mood is apparently a later, non-rocksteady rerecording of the track. I’ve been searching in vain to find an available CD release of this track…

Thanks one more time for the joy and happy moments you gave us with those wonderful gigs with the Skatalites and then with Jamaica All Stars here in Italy.
Love and respect to another, beloved artist of our wonderful music!

Cheers Tim, I googled rar files and downloaded a free extractor thing, thanks for getting back to me mate. the sellection is killer Asher G really is the man, do you have any other recordings of his apart from the one(s) on your podcast page. Really been enjoying the Proffsser and Archie ones again.
All the best
Robert

“If anyoneâ€™s interested in #61, â€œWonâ€™t you come homeâ€ by Delroy Wilson, the version that appears on Dancing Mood is apparently a later, non-rocksteady rerecording of the track. Iâ€™ve been searching in vain to find an available CD release of this trackâ€¦”

The rocksteady version is on the recent Soul Jazz “Studio One Kings” – I didn’t (but should’ve) realized this was the work on TimP, that rare Rulers cut “Let My People Go” is the best thing I ever got off a message board, cheers!

Still lot of personal faves missing but 60 to go! Ken Boothe “Thinking”, Mr Foundation “See Them a Come”, Sound Dimension “Rockfort Rock”, Techniques “Traveling Man”, The Bassies “Big Mistake”, The Mellotones “Fat Girl in Red”, The Wailers “Hurting Inside”, Roy Shirley “I’m the Winner”, The Sensations “Lonely Lover”, Alton Ellis “If I Could Rule the World” and anything by Keith & Tex – so many tunes in barely a two-year time span, amazing! Eagerly awaiting the next ten

hi to all i will in the new year have my uk dub sound system list ready to go with a lot of goodies the list will include all of my recordings ie sound system recordings going back to 1983 featuring myself Mc Clapper Priest
and will also feature many dub club sessions
and uk 1980s sound sessions so i will keep everone posted bless

Hi Tim! Please, carry on with your great work! Still waiting for tunes like “So weary”, “The good you can”, “One Way Street” or “Red eye gal” – and hopefully more tunes like “The Greatest” which I’ve never heard before.

I’m so excited to see the new post for your 100 Greatest Rocksteady tunes. I check your website all the time hoping the new one will be up. I am slowly learning more about comtemporary jamaican music but my real love is anything from the 80’s back. . . especially rocksteady. Keep up the great work.

this is NOT off course a ‘homage to playground plays’ (i dont think it would have been so succesful in Jamaican dancehalls) but a has a double meaning: it’s about about a memory of teenage sex in school, he refers to her Red BUMBO and how she cried when he ‘took it away’.

iam trying to get in contact with a dj by the name of little howie. he came over to england in the 80s with the sound youthman promotions from jamacia. i have heard that he has turned a muslim. i also heard he was in south london area. he means so much to me so i would appreciate it if you can try and contact him for me and even give him my contact ,email. many thanks karina

Hi Gabriel. Fair point (I’ve amended the text)though your compilation was of course released on Soul Jazz.

Whilst they may well have done something like this anyway, after the England Story comp (and it’s popularity) it was a bit of a no brainer really. I should stress this is not meant as a criticism of Soul Jazz – there’s nothing wrong with the comp or the idea I’m just pointing out the connections.

On a related point did you ever check out the UK Dancehall mix i done? I believe this slightly pre-dated your one that lead to England Story (not that I’m claiming any kind of credit or anything). I may put it up on this site soon as the podomatic page hardly every works due to bandwidth restrictions.

I downloaded loads of your mixes from podomatic a couple of years ago including the uk dancehall one, really liked them all especially the rocksteady ones (my favourite reggae era) and the jammy’s and black scorpio selections.

there’s so much uk dancehall (both vocals and productions) that is so good and still largely unknown beyond the uk reggae scene, it’d be great to have more compilations dedicated to that, all that brilliant fashion/montana stuff as well as mafia & fluxy, unity, uk bubblers etc. it’s a shame that there wasn’t space in an england story to include more tracks from that era, in a way I think we maybe ended up spreading things too thinly over 25 years on that.

re: the NYC comp, it’s definitely a good move on SJ’s part, I guess I was a little miffed cos I was thinking of pitching them a similar thing! but like you say, it’s a definite no brainer after the england story one and it’s not like I can lay claim to the concept once it’s out in the open – or indeed before, given that similar mixes like yours and john eden/paul meme’s Lyric Maker (or Fashion’s Great British MCs) had explored the theme already!

thanks, no good local music for a couple weeks and ain’t able to get out to any ska/rocksteady/roots stuff(ie California ect) for a couple months. This fit the bill and I appreciate it. Paul in Fairbanks

While I am happy to see that there is a NY compilation like this, it also seems like the tunes that were selected kind of scrape the bottom of the barrel. I feel like they should have selected at least one vaugely underground Artist like Super C rather than having a bunch of Super Cat who was not, in fact, from NY. For that matter, neither was Born Jamericans (washington D.C.) or Uglyman.

Any chance of this becoming available to listen again? Anyone evry here the BBC radio documentry from around 20 years ago on ska? Love to hear that again. Thanks for sharing and producing this great blog.
Nuff respect
Prince Andrew

I can’t get them back easily but it is possible so I’ll do this over time. I’ll have a look at the Keats Wine Bar clash. I never got all three parts to work on podomatic anyway so it’ll be worth a try. It’s a case of soon come at the moment…I’ll get there when I can.

Hi Tim, Look forward to that, dealy session that Keats do, been after of the vocal to Glen Browns “tell it like it is” and Gene Rondo’s “someday” since hearing them on your podcast.
many thanks for that mate
respect
Robert

I asked Laurence who was involved in this release and this is what he said…

“In regard the inclusion of ‘Loch Ness Monster’ on ‘Fire’, Laurel himself
claimed he was the artist on this and a number of other self-productions
that accredited King Horror, even though the name was also used by Lord
Davey at the time. But regardless of whether it was Aitken or Davey, we felt
it’s inclusion was warranted by Laurel’s involvement as the record’s
producer.”

So it seems probabel that King Horror was a alias for more than one artist (and that Laurel at least was involved in the production). I have even heard people claiming that Lord Tanamo(!) was responsible for Loch Ness Monster…

Does any one know if Mighty Growler/Young Growler was a alias for Lord Davey?

No, Mighty Growler and Young Growler wasn’t the same person. Mighty Growlers real name was Errol Duke and was a trinidadian active under the 30s and 40s and presumably died in the 50s. Young Growler was his son, who recorded calypsos during the 60s notably on the Jump Up label.

Greetings Tim, that was fast! I’m still uploading them. I really enjoyed the selections from Tommy and Massa. Have to say a big thanks to Daddy Reds and Roots FM for the good vibes and to Ash for the tip on Pama.
aka Herbert.

Glad you got round to another 10 great rocksteady tunes. Looking forward to the rest. Would have put “Can’t you see” by Ken Boothe much higher though but it’s all a matter of opinion. At which place will you put “Venus” by Winston Francis? 😉

this Bootleg is on the WRONG label LOL, the don drummond song is a Coxsone prodcution on the CaribOO label, NOT the CaribOU. check out the labels scans on this site. So how come those japanese got it on a Dada Toari’s Caribou label?? hmmm i bet yuo the did not license it…. i am sure Carol Dodd is alread talking to her lawyers, so better buy this quick (or wait for the eminent official Coxsone re-release

All other Caribou singles are more in a mento/calypso style and produced by Dada Touari, and this sounds very much like the skatalites , which makes me think Coxsone so how come this is on Caribou?

see, that’s why i was thinking that some one jus put the wrong label on a bootleg. And if it is a Coxsone production, Carol Dodd would have been invloved i presume.

but then again, the CariBOO singels seem to bee more from the pre-ska era(owen gray, cleu J)so it would be odd for coxsoen to revive this labelin 1964-65 ( which sound more like the era for this chune)

And maybe it was a track that Douari licensed from coxsone to put out on his own label. or a one off ska recording he madewith the skatates.

but i am not sure, as yuo say. most of the time those Japanese deal with legal matters more properly than most Jamaican or UK re-issuers.

so please take off my copmment if you feel like it, because it seems i was too hasty in condemming this re-release.

Cheers for the response. I was thinking the same thing about the Coxsone Cariboo label which was also very early 60’s. To be honest I have no idea who produced Bellevue Special I’ve not seen any evidence that it’s Coxsone, except the claim in RKR (without a matrix) but maybe it is?

I’ll delete the comment if you wish but the discussion is good so I’ll leave it if your OK with that?

i had the lp back in the 70s and sold it out of ignorance. so glad it came back around on cd. the lagoon label released Treasure Dub 1 & 2 and this completes the trilogy. a hard to find work has resurrected for the world to enjoy. i will. thx, Lord Chris (musical savior)

Joe White`s ! I`m So Proud ” and its instrumental version by Karl Bryan & Lyn Taitt & The Jets is also avaliable on the ” Jamaican Memories ” CD on Trojan TJACD 014 , which btw is a storming collection of the original LP plus 16 bonus tracks !

Many thanks for this lists of tunes. So nice with your comments and pics. Facts Of Life by Roy Shirley And The Uniques and Dedicated To You AKA Dedicate My Song To You by the Jamaicans are my alltime favourites on this list(81-90).

Patsy – Love Is Divine
aka Find Someone, issued in the UK on High Note as the flip to The Gaytones’ Target (HS037, ’70), but I’m sure it was issued on an earlier UK High Note with a different title.
a superb Ska-to-Rock Steady, definitely Jamaican Soul!
Great site Tim, keep on the good work!

I wish we had this kind of sound on the west coast of Canada. Is there any way that this latest tighten up session could be posted for download, cause the older sessions are such great listening material. Thanks very much.

i’ve been following this section religiously since conception,the tunes keep getting better& better,and is a constant source of inspiration,how about Earnest & freddie-‘deep down in my heart,got this on a blank Flames(anyone ever seen a labeled copy?)i hope this gets an inclusion,it deserves one!
keep up the great work

please go to myspace sir collins
and download the chapter 1 album remastered from the original reel to reels from the sir collins archive
stay blessed dancecrasher and keep up the good work
sir collins and family

The “deal” is that transcribing patois is difficult. My personal opinion that if you transcribe everything into “closest standard English” you lose the feel of the language. So when deciding whether to transcribe “take” or “tek,” “can’t” or “cyaan,” “that” or “dat,” I went with what seemed closer to how it was originally said. So a couple of times in the interview, when Trinity said “man” in a way that sounded much more like “mon,” I transcribed it as such; elsewhere in the interview I transcribed using the standard spelling.

i dont understand the info update on Wont’you come home. To my ears the version as it appears on ‘Dancing Mood'(the LP, i dont do CD’s) is the original rock steady version, with a slight overdub on the drums. so it’s not a remake as suggested by paul.

From the fairly “Latin” sound of it, “Voodoo Moon” is probably a cover of the 1942 Enric Madriguera tune also known as “Enlloro”. He was a Latin American bandleader popular from about 1932-1950, and the tune was also recorded by Percy Faith.

Dang!
Memories By The Score â€“ The Paragons. I copped this from my parents collection way back when on a blank and had no idea who it was or the story behind it. Not dug it out for a while, but it’s double AA sider and a nice tune. Good work.

As kalcidis says ” long awaited ” . Another great crop of tunes here , Tim . Spoil us and release the whole caboodle on a multi-CD compilation ? …. we can but wish . Thanks for your hard work and eclectic taste .

Great posting — a terrific balance between your deep knowledge of the tunes as a collector/scholar and your outright enthusiasm for the music. Also, it is refreshing to see a list like this that balances the obscure rarities with more well known masterpieces.

I had no idea ‘Foo Manchu’ was British! You are right about British rock steady. I propose a debate on great British rock steady. ‘Foo Manchu’ is already taken so I suggest ‘Rudy’s Dead’ by Little Grants & Eddie on Pyramid and ‘Invaders At The Carnival’ by the Invaders on Columbia Blue Beat.

Yes, I thought you’d buried the project by now. Man I’ve waited long for this installment. “Travelling man”, yes indeed, though I’d definately put the instrumental, “Moon Shot” on my top ten of rocksteady instrumentals. Also good to see the Wail’nSoul’m starting to pop up, couldn’t be the last…Thanks!

Thanks everyone for the comments.
Trev – there is no chance of a compilation as I don’t have the rights to these tunes. I did think about a mix tape/podcast type thing though, I may get round to it one day!
Donald – other good UK rocksteady? Hmmmm that would be hard, there are some half decent tunes for sure but nothing else comes close IMO…
Martin – Trust me this won’t be buried but it still may take along time to complete! I don’t know Moon Shot I don’t think. Your comment about Wail’nSoul’m may well be accurate – wait and see 😉

On face value this like any other PS release looks very exciting but if like me you have the original 1995 release and the later release Down Santic Way another PS compilation of Leonard Chin’s output from 2005 you will note tracks 6. Columbo â€“ Augustus Pablo, 7. Special Branch â€“ Leonard Santic All Stars and 19. I Donâ€™t Want To Lose You â€“ Paul Whiteman all appear on the later release.
So what do you actually gain from the increased release? 9. Hell Boat â€“ Santic All Stars (Augustus Pablo), 18. Mexican Rocking â€“ Santic All Stars a straight version of I Roy’s Yamaha Ride, 20. Shouldn’t Say No â€“ Jah Woosh the DJ cut to Paul Whiteman’s I Donâ€™t Want To Lose You also available on the Chalice Blaze LP / CD and track 21. Santic Meet King Tubby â€“ King Tubby & The Santic All Stars the dub / version to Paul Whiteman’s I Donâ€™t Want To Lose You.
Two tracks are deleted from the 1995 release 15. Free Jah Jah Children – Jah Woosh and 16. Blackman In Dub – Augustus Pablo & Paul Blackman, which to my listening ear is the same as track 21 from the new release Santic Meet King Tubby â€“ King Tubby & The Santic All Stars.
You can do the maths for yourself, the only advice I would give is…….if you don’t have either of the releases mentioned then you do need to buy it.

The lead vocal on Travelling Man is actually by Johnny Johnson of the Techniques and not Pat Kelly. Watch the Rock Steady Reunion video and you’ll see him sing it. Johnny dropped out of the business although he is rumoured to be the voice behind Johnny and the Attractions. May well be true?

Truly a sound to knock down Babylon walls
We lose the man at a time of such iniquity
When righteousness is at a premium
We need music such as his to remind us that there is a proper way to live our lives

Lesha, hi I’m Mike the guy who did these interviews, I thought about transcribing them, but have put that idea aside, just not enough time in my life to do it. However anyone is of course welcome to do exactly that and I’d be all the help I could.

Hi Tim, I’d be very interested in seeing them transcribed, just not in doing the work myself. It’s only that I am so busy with stuff, I’ve got shows coming up to do with Steve gain, the possibility in the offing of doing something similar with Penny Reel and I hope Dave Home, plus the shows I already do, the websites I’m designing and the blog I’ve just started regarding wider musical interests. It’s all mad, plus the 2 year old, the wifey and the lack of a job at the moment. . . (as you know, ’cause you’re doing similar)
If I can help then I can send a DVD of the shows, but I just can’t spend the time doing the transcribing. Anyone else who wants to put in the time is very free to do so thought. There is nearly 4 hours of chat, so the transcription I can’t imagine how long that would take, it would certainly be a big job. I’d be happy for you to havem hosted at D’Crasher, as you know you were my original inspiration!

Simple Simon cut Christopher Columbus twice both times on full up! First one was for Hit Bound and then for the LP he did for Striker. If you notice, the riddim is a bit more digital than the Hit Bound edition.

Hi Tim,
Sorry to high-jack this thread but do you know if there’s any recordings of the Dancecrasher Tiny T & Professor Mark night a couple of weeks back, sounded a good night!!!
Cheers
Robert (Roliesoul)

I enjoyed the mix and the site as a whole hope to get down to another one of your nights, me and my girl enjoyed the Texas Ranger one. Check out my blog and our runnings up in brum http://www.friendlyfiremusic.com/.

Hi Robert – Thanks for asking. Yeah I’ve got a recording of the Tiny T dance. The mic didn’t come out but the rest is there, I’ll put it up for a download tomorrow.

Prince Horror – The recordings are done to an old mini disc and then recorded to the computer in real time. They are recorded directly from the desk (not by mic) which means the quality is usually very good.

the story is well known and told manuy time before, but sleng teng was released at least 1 week earlier than feb 23,’85 in the UK: new entry at number 5 in the Echoes disco 45 charts of februari 16, 1985. (see: http://www.xs4all.nl/~tapirs/1985.htm)

Fair point it would be interesting to see if there are sound tapes of it being played before the Black Scorpio clash. It’s hard to believe that it wouldn’t have been played on a sound somewhere if the Greensleeves release was out there.

I’ve always assumed that the Jammy’s 7″ came out before the Greensleeves 12″ but maybe not??

i dont know. I do know that a lot of music was only (or first) released in the UK ( from the pama-trojan days up to Jet Star & Greensleeves decline)

because there was a huge market. so it is possible that Jammy first wanted to test the highly experimental sound of sleng teng on the UK market before release in in Jamaica.

And greensleeve was right on the case releasing material of producers like junjo, jammys and george phang.

Also i cannot beleive that if the JA 45 was releasedd before it wouldn’t turn up in the Echoes import 45 top 10..

This one is for the people that were there..I was just a teenager in Holland.

but now the deepen the mystery:
First time i heard Sleng Teng was on Mikey Dread’s radioshow ‘Rockers In The Morning'(still have it on tape)
I tried to find out the transmisson date for a reference. and this is what i read on Mikey Dreads homepage:

Later in 1983-1984 Mikey Dread was employed at VPRO Radio in the Netherlands as a host and producer of a very successful weekly reggae program called “Rockers in the Morning.”He also presented a reggae show for Radio West in Bristol and produced reggae special reports for BBC Radio 1 for a national broadcast across the UK.

In 1984 Mikey Dread hosted live events including “Miss Black UK pageant” in Birmingham.
…
In 1985 Mikey Dread produced and presented a Reggae Radio special for Australian Broadcasting Corporation 105.7 FM JJJ Radio Sydney, Australia.

So if he hasn’t mixed up any dates it has to have been 1984!!

I will go in a Holmes mode and aks the radiostation, maybe they can look up any old transmission dates and solve this riddle

Easy Marni – that tune is Penetrate by The Almighty Stones. Great record. Picked it up a few years back off DJ Stein (The System) but haven’t played it out that much. Can’t remember the label right now tho…

Just had a bit more of a listen and I’m actually only playin for the first 20 mins after which Plattsie takes over with that killer horns ting so his set’s right on there for sure. Will have a proper listen later.
Cheers,
Steve

Thanks M.B., found out I heard it on eBay before (and lost the bid). Did a little research: on the original issue (Welders 7″) they were named Mighty Artons. Only 50 copies were issued apparently. Then as The Almighty Stones on Hot Stuff. But what a bass.

as far as I know, Sleng Teng was played the very first time ina dance by Blacka Dread on 11th of January 1985 (Sir Coxsone vs Saxon). Coxsone got the Under Me Sleng Teng pre-release from Jammy (different mix as the JA 45) and they also had a dubplate on Sleng Teng by Junior Reid called Under Sir Coxsone. my friend who was an active part of the Sir Coxsone crew in those days told me that they had the dubplate a couple of months before the pre-release. anyway, this claim opens a new topic – what was the first tune on Sleng Teng? 🙂

Jumbo: I’m not sure if Mikey Dread played it in 1984. But let me know if you find out the transmission date.

i did get a reply from the Media Archive, they have 2 undated Rockers In The Morning shows in their possession. so unfortunately i cannot find out the transmission dates. THe arent allowed to copy them for me, but i could go there and listen at a 45 euros an hour rate.. which is a bit much.

Jumbo: I didn’t push the release date forward. Sir Coxsone played a pre-release (with an intro) and not an already released tune. I know you didn’t mean it like that, I just want to be precise. I’m sure you know that any detail matters.. 🙂

Tim P: throw a mail to doncosmic(at)peppa(dot)biz, I’ll give you a link for the whole tape.

true, but in the UK the term pre-release is usually used for a Jamaican import 45 (blank or printed)and a release a UK printed 7 or 12″.

So if he spinned a JA pressed 45 pre, it would have been pressed and thus available at least a few days before( manufacturing and transport time minimized)in Jamaica.A nd if a UK sound would have it i am sure Jamaican sounds would be able to play it as well eventhough it wasn’t available to the general public, thus not pushing the official release date further, but in the same time shedding doubt on the february soundclash sleng teng debute myth.
If on the other hand Coxsone played an UK pre-release/testpress they obtained from Greensleeves, Coxsone could well be the sole sound worldwide to play that chune on that moment(except for Jammy’s Superpower offcourse)

The version on the tape is off dub plate surely and not a vinyl issue, as well as the spoken intro it sounds like the mix is different though I could be wrong about this as its hard to tell if the sound is being manipulated by Blacka on the sound. So it’s a pre but not in the sense of a Jamaican vinyl issue.

As such this proves nothing concerning what date the UK or Jamaica issue was released but it certainly corrects when it was first played out in a dance.

Would it be possible to get a PDF download of the programme as mine has got lost over the years.
This was a brilliant concert and I feel proud that I travelled with a few of my mates on the train down from the Wirral, Cheshire at the time of this feast of reggae music. Superb.

Ive listened to the rest of that tape thanks to Don Cosmic. It’s certainly very early 85 but unfortunately there is nothing on the tape to indicate a definite date (no announcements of future dances etc). That said I don’t doubt the information given by DC so 11th of January 1985 is the probable date. It’s credible to think that Jammy’s may have let a dubplate of Under my Sleng Teng go to Coxsone in the UK (but not to any Jamaican sound) knowing that would have little impact on what he done when re-lauching Jammy’s Supa Power at the dance with Black Scorpio.

I spoke to Champian from Jamdown Rockers about Sleng Teng the other day, he thinks the Greensleeves 12″ did come out first and also that it wasn’t the first tune released on the rhythm with Pumpkin Belly, for one, coming first. This again probably causes more questions than it does answers as Under My Sleng Teng is in the UK reggae charts on 16 February 1985 yet Beth Lesser puts Tenor Saw voicing Pumpkin Belly on exactly the same day!

It’s nice to see a song I wrote, a record I produced on the Sue Label with Bobby Lee back in 1966, is still being heard regardless of who the artist is. The back side of the original version had a change of mood for me when I wrote it. I was being more optimistic when My Luck Is Bound To Change was recorded. Im still waiting for the royalties from 1966….lol

Thanks Erik – I hadn’t heard the Boops version (I slept on a recent version of Duck rhythm too even though Busy Signal’s cut was really good). Maybe a round up of all recent re-licks would be in order.

Can’t recall any brand new relicks apart from those mentioned and those you’ve written about lately.

French crew Irie Ites has done a version of Su Su Pon Rasta though. This was released in March. Vocals by Naggo Morris and Trinity. The riddim is very close to the original. Same crew has also done redone Strange Things and done a very good job IMO. This was last year though.

Nas & Damian Marley have a version of Land of Promise by Dennis Brown/Love Fire by Aswad on the new album Distant Relatives. Tough version.

have been wanting to know who sung ‘reggae a go go’ for years ! another tune from this period is Earnest Wilsons private number which allways sounds as if the tapes been run slightly too fast , great tune none the less.

Hi Donald
Thanks for spotting that, I’ve got that Junior single but never made the connection. I’d always wondered about the Anthony King credit as 1)never heard of him 2)there is more than one voice on the tune. My guess is that the Ranny Williams & George Regent credit is more likely to be correct but I don’t know how Trojan had the tune (master tape or pre?) and how they got the credits. I’ll try and find out and will report back.

Greetings Tim, Trojan included quite a few nice extra tracks on their CD reissue of ‘Tighten Up Vol 1’, a lot of which sounded like they came from tape. One of those tracks was ‘Rent Too High’ by Ranny Williams and George Regent so maybe ‘Let them Talk’ was from the same tape? In any case, it’s great to see tracks like these see the light of day!

Very good idea to have someone in the know add some perspective and common sense into what sometimes seems as hysterical as the stock exchange. Mr Barrow can hardly complain about the prices Mr Brooks fetches for him..The Clifton Gibbs ‘Brimstone & Fire* he sold 2 weeks ago went for around 400 $. I bought a copy some months back for 60$, both EX+. Ease up people. The scent of Steve can’t be worth THAT much.

I’m really glad you brought this up – I’ve just listened to both versions (on youtube – I don’t have the repress). Most interestingly even without the intro the repress is quite a bit longer than the Fugitive issue (over 20 seconds), therefore assuming the Doctor Bird issue isn’t also longer which I doubt but can’t check at the moment, then the Moodisc reissue definitely comes from the mastertape and i’d have to say it’s fairly likely that the intro is also on there too.

This is all conjecture of course but I’m really glad to have spotted that the repress is longer – I’ll have to go out and buy it now.

And I’m glad somebody else wonder about these things.. The only thing that speaks for owning the orginal press is that the Fugitive label is so much better looking than the Moodisc repress. And of course that the orginal lick of the Lecturer-riddim is on the other side. Swap my repress for the original? ;D

I have only just discovered the Dancecrasher website and am hugely impressed at the labour of love it represents. The Rocksteady countdown is a great feature which has kept your correspondents on the edge of their seats for a couple of years. I like the way you play it out gradually. It’s not until you are finished that anyone can complain about their favourites being left out. I am looking forward to seeing “Inez”(in the top ten),”Soul and Inspiration”(Hamlins), as well as “Sad Movies” all featuring.

Keep up the good work. It’s an informed and thoughtful site for those of us who love the music

Yes, I wouldn’t begrudge Steve or Bob as they’ve both paid their dues and deserve a return – exactly why people would wish to bid significantly more for these tunes is still a mystery to me though. That said I’m not sure if Bob and Steve are the only sellers on ebay that attract consistently high prices in comparrison to everyone else but this is perhaps te most extreme example.

It can be a mystery sometimes but there are certain records that I want that could be considered ‘gap fillers’ that are not neccessarily great records but I might be willing to pay a high price for that reason. Perhaps that is what happens here. All the best.

An interesting look at some recent activity on Ebay. The good news is that there are still plenty of good value records to be found on Ebay.
For example, I saw a very clean copy of Uhuru’s ‘Folk Song’ on Top Cat go for about Â£25 very recently. Not only is it a great record but it’s also really hard to find on the original Jamaican pressing. Someone got a bargain!

I have a caltone pre with the matrix number wirl bc 4553 does anyone know who it might be . I would appreciate any information that might be available . The other side has no matrix number as far as I can See.

Bim and Bam, the Jamaican comedians do not seem to appear on this programme – were they there as a supporting act? If not, does anyone know when they did appear? They were on a Jamaican music programme at the Empire Pool Wembley in the second half of the 1970s.

Firstly I wonder if it’s that difficult to understand, eBay only benefits from this eventually if they are as they have been for some time trying to push everyone into selling and therefore buying using Buy It Now and not auction.

Secondly, it’s not just Late 60s early 70s tunes getting ‘overed by the Mexican treatment, it’s happened on a number of recent autions on Jamaican 78s that I’ve been part of, and he’s screwed up royally.

I stupidly missed an opportunity to meet with eBay “executives” in San Jose not long ago, so I emailed about this problem, referencing this (very good) article (thank you).

As there was no reply initially I emailed again and got this useless response from “Kristine.” Her email address is included if you want to email her/him/it.

Hello Mark,

My name is Kristine with eBayâ€™s Office of the President. I received your message here at csme@ebay.com and I wanted to see if I could help out with this issue.

We have taken action against the accounts that we were able to locate that have been placing fraudulent bids. I will also request that this individual be added to our filters, which are tools that allows us to screen individuals based on past patterns and behaviors. However, as you can imagine, extremely determined individuals can sometimes circumvent these filters. We will do our best to keep this member from continually disturbing our sellers, but I canâ€™t guarantee that they wonâ€™t return. If this does happen, please contact me right away at this address so that I can add any new information to our filters to help tighten them up.

As much as I would love to go after this individual in their own country, that isnâ€™t always an option. I will continue to monitor the situation and pass along any concerns if this continues.

Still listen to those mix very often, I love them ! Have a question about 1 track. The last one from the part 2, I understand it’s announced as “the Renegade” from “the Zodiacs” but after a search it appears that this track is in fact some ska… Can u please, please (please !) tell me the good band and title of that sweet old reggae melody. Thx you !

It is the Zodiacs, this rocksteady cut is a Merritone production and as far as I know only came on a blank. It’s usually called Renegade but Roots Knotty Roots calls it Walk On By. It’s on youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GIzlnjYqnE

Recently got a CD called ” Cool, Cool Rocksteady ” which features loads of the tracks listed above . All in superb quality , btw. Not very often that you get ” multiple version ” Rocksteady tracks . Recommended , imho , for the non vinylites !

Yes family, pls tell more about tune called Nothing Come Easy from Cornel Campbell. I have the same tune but on tempo riddim from Dub Chemis(JA). What is the name of the label who release this tune on other riddim.

Not the first time Pepper Pot has been re-issued, at least not here in the UK – I have a facsimile Randy’s issue of this from about 10 yrs ago (?) with a great Jackie Mittoo version – ‘Walking Trouble’ – on the B-side. Like you though, I’m puzzled at such a short pressing run, especially given the popularity of this ‘Skinhead’ genre. I wonder if Carlos will be getting himself a copy?

The idea that raggae histories all come to a sudden halt with the ragga explosion of the late 1980s and beyond is not all together accurate. The Rough Guide To Reggae by Steve Barrow and myself included a chapter on this very subject (as well as sections within the UK and US chapters). Included in the last updating of the book (2004) are such figures as Admiral Bailey,Chaka Demus, Lieutenant Stitchie, Major Worries, Courtney Melody, Cobra, Cutty Ranks,Buju Banton, Beenie Man, Tiger, General Degree, Wayne Marshall, Red Dragon, Super Cat. Vybz Kartel, Elephant Man, Ward 21 – in fact everyone of importance in the field up to the date of publication that we had space for!

Think Alcapone’s cut to How did you know Rub up a daughter is on Mr. Gray’s original riddim as you can hear Mr. Gray sing in the background. The High School JA-pre-release’ matrix bears the intials GR…

I tried to see the full article/chart, but without any luck. After clicking “check the full article here” above I found myself on a site devoted to various forms of dance music but with nothing (I could find) on Ragga. I’d still like to see it, so would appreciate any advice as to the next move after getting on to the site…or has the article been removed?

Does anyone know if these five tunes have ever appeared on .45 before? I’m only aware of the two by Anthony Red Rose & King Kong appearing on their “Two Big Bull In A One Pen” album, and the other three on “King Tubby Presents Soundclash Dub Plate Style”.

“Reincarnated souls” hasnt been released since ” Blackheart man”, do you have any idea if that version is re-masterized, I’m not familiar with this Label. Hopefully the quality will be better than original!

Thanks for the audio Tim! I was lucky to be in town that weekend and passed through, the vibes were nice! Carl Meeks did a nice show and Deadly Dragon played a nice set, Champion killed it with a few nice tunes on the mic. Trueschool vibes as I would say!

nice film, worth it just to listen to the congos music which is a different cut to the Image of Africa album audio which was supposed to be the soundtrack, the audio in the film is just like another Heart of the Congos LP,same standards, AMAZING!! why didn’t they release this version as the LP i will never know. Congos are legendary……

There are only 4 or 5 genuine wailers/Marley dubplates. The rest of them are all frauds .There is a high chance this one is as well.

Most of that stuff is either unreleased/unfinished studio material that was somehow leaked or ended up in the public domain. Or done by the offspring of mr Marley / by Albert Griffiths from the Gladiators who is said to be a very good Bob Marley impersonator.

Hello. I just wanted to mention here that I have a list of 350 of the best reggae/rocksteady/ska songs that I have trimmed down from my collection of about 3,600 songs. If you’d like to see it I’d be willing to share. I need some help identifying the artist on two or three of the songs. Thanks for this list, and I hope you decide to correspond with me.

Thanks for putting these up, I was really looking forward to it. I think though that there is a problem with the files, because when you are directed to megaupload it says the files are unavailable. Just thought I would let you know. Cheers.

There was a very entertaining Keith Lawrence interview with Blacker Dread on Colourful Radio recently where ‘Sleng Teng’ was discussed. Tim P asked Blacker who played it first…..
You can listen to it here;http://www.colourfulradio.com/presenter/keithlawrence/
..show number 75 from 24/11/2010

fantasic interview, just came across this interview from clicking a few links on anther site, great job love the samples, great history, welton was never one of my fav djs, i was a big echo fan, fav tape back in the day was echo, brigg, nancy and the singers, which i still play, but i really enjoy the history, and never knew how much work he put in, it kind of links up with the small interview lone ranger did in the studio one dvd, when he talks about the he and some dj,s from east mash up a dance and he got dj for the year, was it ranger welton ringo and echo

Tim,
There’s also a false start version of ‘Can’t you see’ in a very similar vein to “royal cord” (FND 8003A). Starting “if you want to know about version you’ve got to stop at this station, right about now I give to you man called Ken boothe…..dig it”, the song runs for a minute and then pauses “don’t get me wrong, i only stopped the song to tell you this….it’s a hit, just can’t miss” then restarts.
Almost certainly done at the same time as Royal Cord and a very cheap way to re-use the Links material i suppose. I’d rather have the unadulterated version…..

Hello, hope i’m not boring asking for another of those great tunes, but what is the one at 25:40 on the part. 2 ? looks like Toots & the Maytals but can’t find something related on the web… Thanks a lot !!

thank you for that wonderful ranking. Bus dem shut 20 th position, I can’t wait for the first ones. But i think you should reconsider alva reggie lewis revelation and consider zoot simms see them a come. anyway appreciate the work.